Ridges - ITS PINK!!!

[countrymini]

Forgot to ad that the his new owner has offered to have my girls there any time to be serviced by him. So if his babies are beautiful I can go back for more.

 

[AnnaC]

Awwww. Good luck Wazza - it sounds as though you have found a brilliant new home!

Sending you big ((((HUGS))))

 

[countrymini]

Thanks Anna. She's going to get him ready and start showing him soon so if she gives me permission I'll show you any photos she has of him strutting his stuff. Can't wait.

 

[countrymini]

hmm Sweety acting a bit seasonish today. Last dates she was in was 14 - 20th Sept and its been 4 weeks since the 20th so the timing is out of whack to be in season again isn't it? It was when she was doing a wizzer so probably that self cleaning thing again and me being paranoid. I'll keep an eye out for any non wee winking.

 

[countrymini]

I asked permission to share this with you and its all fine. Wazza all clipped out. She's going to start showing him in a couple of weeks.

 

[Jade10]

Aww he looks so handsome

love his spotty bum!

 

[AnnaC]

Oh he looks great. Wishing her good luck with the shows.

 

[countrymini]

Yes he does look rather dashing and the new owner is so happy with him.

Totally off subject now but when I first purchased Indi (chestnut tobiano) I thought her hooves looked very odd. Quite flared and triangular in shape. I had asked her owner at the time if she'd ever foundered and the answer was no. Her odd shapped hooves got me curious so I've been doing loads of reading ever since. I definately know now that she had laminitis when I purchased her but I know the previous owner wasn't lying, because if she was anything like me untill i researched it I thought they had to be lame to have it. Now her front hoof slopes from the coronary band for about an inch at the correct angle then flares to the toe. So in another 6 or so months she should have nice little hooves again.

 

[Wings]

Nice to see all his spots exposed!

 

[countrymini]

Hi all, got some updated photos of Bindi. We finally got some rain last night and the girls decided to make the most of the mud, as usual, so they're completely grotty.

I worked out on the foal calculator that Bindi would be at earliest 288 days or at latest 196 days today.



Have been trotting Sweety and she has lost a bit of chub around the ends and neck, but that gut.... any ideas on exercises to get that tight? lol

 

[Wings]

Hard work, soaked hay and make sure worming is up to date and diet needs (often protein) are being met. But every horse is different and some are more inclined to be 'gutty' then others. Then you get some broodmares who don't bounce back from the stretch (my poor Fantasy for one!)

 

[countrymini]

I give them oaten chaff, and wet it well before I give it to them but didn't think to let it soak. they're also on daily suppliments (Kohnke's own cell provide) that has minimum crude protien 12.5%. Is that enough?

 

[Wings]

You'll need the feed experts in here for that

But personally I don't like oaten chaff, I prefer straight oats and I mix with lucerne chaff. Oats and lucerne are the perfect combination as they balance each other out. I feed a vitamin supplement and mitavite breeda on top of that.

Problem with working them is, even if they are a bit on the fat side, you need to put good feed back in otherwise they never get that perfect athletic look.

 

[countrymini]

How much lucerne chaff do you give a day? And what about oaten and lucerne chaff that is already mixed? I'm just freaked about foundering lol

 

[Wings]

I know the feeling! Right now most of mine are on nothing because even though it looks like there is little grass it's growing so quickly and is so rich!

On the founder front remember that a decent workout 3 times a week can really help avoid potential founder.

Chaff to me is a bit of a 'nothing' feed, if I didn't grow my own hay I'd actually be feeding lucerne hay instead of chaff but I need the lucerne to balance things out. But that's why I like my whole oats as opposed to oaten chaff.

Bit of info on oats from the two people who help me with all my feeding!

Oats are the lowest energy of all grain
Oats have the same energy content of wheat byproducts which full most commercial pellets ie 1 kilo of most pellets is equal to one kilo of oats

Oats do not have the issues with binding calcium that bran does

Oats are extremely high in B group vitamins and tryptophan (both of which are found in commercial calming pastes)

Oats are considered a "nervine" for this reason (in that in the correct dose will actually calm your horse)

Oats have been a 90% digestion rate, compared to around 30% of other grains meaning they are more suitable to most horses

Oats are around 13% protien, which is an excellent level for youngsters, horses in work, and elderly horses

Oats hulls are an excellent source of fibre

Oats are slightly unbalanced with regards to cal/phos (not as bad as bran though), so this must be taken into consideration (Wings in: this is why the lucerne is an important component!)

Oats contain trace amounts of MSM

Oats contain more soluble fiber than any other grain, resulting in slower digestion and an extended sensation of fullness
Oat protein is nearly equivalent in quality to soy protein

Oats lack many of the prolamines found in wheat (Prolamins are a group of plant storage proteins and the major cause of caeliac disease in people)

Oats after corn (maize) have the highest lipid content of any cereal - Lipids are a broad group of naturally-occurring molecules which includes fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E and K) etc

In humans, oats lower cholesterol, help reduce heart disease, and contain Antioxidant compounds unique to oats, called avenanthramides which help prevent free radicals and are especially helpful for heart disease prevention. So guess they would benifit a horse in similar ways?

Raw oats provide silica - All creatures–insects, plants and humans–need silica for structure to stand upright, and for stronger bones, smooth skin, shiny hair and beautiful nails/hoofs.

Can you tell we love our oats?

I'm trying to find my weight guide for my feeding to give you exact numbers but it seems to be hiding, right now Fantasy has a biscuit of grass hay, half a scoop of lucerne, 1 cup of oats, 1 cup of Breeda, vitamin supp. During winter the other broodmares where getting this twice a day and larger portions. Spesh is getting the same but he is about to start working some of his off. I very much go by the grass growth and current condition and tweak as we go.

 

[AnnaC]

I find that any mare who has had a foal will keep her 'foal' tummy - not as huge as when she was close to expecting of course but most will always have tummy of some size because things have spread! Once I decide that a mare is going to become a brood mare then she is allowed to relax into her new life - even if I dont intend to breed from her on a regular basis. This doesn't mean that she cant go out for walkies to give her some extra interest etc, but I dont think I would be looking to work her to try to reduce her tummy size.

I cant advise as to feeding as I'm in the UK plus the fact that all mine live out at grass 24/7 in a herd basis (some 38 of them at the moment - all different ages from a year to 28), but if I was needing to feed them then in the early stages of pegnancy I would look at normal maintainance feed, plus free choice vitamins and minerals/salt and plenty of grass or forage of some kind. If they have grass to nibble at regularly then no problem. but if mostly on a dry lot then I dont think I would be including chaff in their feed - can be eaten up too quickly - but would be putting small piles of hay all over their dry lot space so that they move around while 'grazing' to replicate their natural eating habits as much as possible.

Hope this makes sense - been very busy today and am having trouble getting my brain to work efficiently! LOL!!

 

[countrymini]

Think i've been converted to the oat way of life lol. And Anna you made perfect sense. Thanks all

 

[Wings]

Think i've been converted to the oat way of life lol. And Anna you made perfect sense. Thanks all

Did I mention it's also cheaper then using premixes?

This message has been brought to you by the Society of Oats are Awesome Why Aren't You Using Them?

Like Anna I don't work the broodmares unless there is a health reason, like founder risk, too fat etc.

 

[countrymini]

Since you know the SOAWAYUT, can you get me some really really cheap?

I was only worried about foundering but half a scoop of Lucerne can't hurt if you're not having problems.

 

[countrymini]

Forgot to ask, whole oats or rolled oats?